


you got it, hawk

by gentlewaltz



Category: Cobra Kai (Web Series)
Genre: Coming Out, Gender Identity Issues, Nonbinary Character, This is me projecting, idk when this takes place kind of mid season 2?, nonbinary characters - Freeform, so sorry if its ooc i just love nonbinary characters okay, they/she hawk, they/them demetri
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-05
Updated: 2021-01-05
Packaged: 2021-03-15 08:27:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,082
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28560549
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gentlewaltz/pseuds/gentlewaltz
Summary: demetri and hawk come out to each other.
Relationships: Demetri & Eli "Hawk" Moskowitz, Demetri (Cobra Kai)/Eli "Hawk" Moskowitz
Comments: 7
Kudos: 42





	you got it, hawk

He felt like this for a long, long time. There were no known words for this feeling, no one else who felt like this. He was so close to telling Eli, so many times the words made his stomach ache. He just wanted his best friend to know. Now, Eli would never know. There was no way Demetri would risk his safety to tell his ex-best-friend about his silly little problems. Besides, Eli was giving off terrible vibes now. He didn’t exactly want to be hate-crimed by Cobra Kai.

Speaking the words aloud was too intimidating. He couldn’t even say them in his head. But today he will force those words up and out, maybe this will be the day his heart ache leaves him alone.

He stands in front of the full-length mirror on the back of his closet door. Various stickers cover the remaining wood material of the door.

“I’m Demetri and I-” He pauses, and sighs.

“I’m non-binary.”

He almost gets sick. The strangest feeling he has ever encountered- relieved yet worried, his body goes through the motions of his extreme anxiety yet, he has never felt better.

He smiles at himself in the mirror.

He did it.

Baby steps. His phone buzzes on his bed, coming out muffled as it was lost in his blanket- A gift from Eli. December, two years ago. They bought each other the same blanket- He walks over and shakes out the blanket, his phone tumbling onto his pillow. A text from- Eli.

**hey. can i come over ?**

Demetri pauses. No, Eli wouldn’t just text him, not after this, not after the yelp review and the mall and his stunt at Moon’s party- He is speechless. So badly, he wants his best friend back, but after everything that has happened… could Eli be planning something sinister? Would he really hurt Demetri in his own home?

_Sure. Now?_

**im outside**

Demetri’s heart flutters. Fear. So much has changed in the past few minutes hefinallysaidthewordsoutloudhegotoverofhisfearofthatnineletterwordthatnineletterthreesyllablewordohmygodhisheartisbeatingtoofastandnotfastenoughhecantbreathesomeonerollthewindowsdown-

No. No worrying and being anxious over his best friend. It’s just Eli. Just. Eli.

Behind the front door, Eli stands with his hair still dyed red and spiked up and his new clothes and-

"Hey. Sorry for such short notice. I didn’t know who else to come to.”

Demetri doesn’t know what to say, again. He stares at Eli.

“You think you can just- just treat me terribly and hurt me and threaten me and expect me to pretend like everything is okay? Like none of that happened? You were the one who abandoned me, not the other way around. You aren’t doing me a favour by coming here, you should have picked one of your other asshole friends.” Demetri didn’t realize how strongly he felt towards Eli. Relief, and guilt.

Eli’s face fell. Demetri knew that look all too well, the same expression Eli used to wear almost every day. Defeat and resentment.

“You’re right-” “I’m sorry-” Demetri hugs Eli. Inside, they sit on Demetri’s bed together. Side by side, hands almost touching. Like normal. “Are you alright?” Demetri breaks the silence. “I can’t think of any reason why you would want to be here.” Eli stares at the stickers beside the mirror. A new one catches his attention.

He sighs. “Well, first, I want to apologize-”

“Yeah, like that would mean anything now.” Demetri interrupts. He immediately regrets his sarcastic response.

“I’m sorry, okay? I can’t exactly go back and undo it, I don’t have a time-turner!” Demetri smiles, laughing lightly.

“Hey, come on, don’t make fun of the Harry Potter reference,” Eli smiles, too.

“I’m not. I'm glad to have you back. I’m sorry for interrupting.”

“I’m sorry for everything. I’m so sorry, Demetri, I… I want to make it up to you but I’m not sure I ever can. I feel terrible over this, I swear I won’t be mean anymore, I promise, please…”

Demetri moves his hand on top of Eli’s.

“I forgive you, Eli.”

Eli’s expression changes, again.

“Actually… that’s something else I came here for.”

“For what?”

“I’m… I’ve been thinking a lot, for a while. Since before I joined Cobra Kai. I was going to tell you then, but I was too scared. Then I was going to tell you after I joined Cobra Kai, I was going to use my confidence to stop being so scared but… I just couldn’t. And I can’t not tell you any longer, Demetri. Please don’t hate me for this, but if you don’t agree or whatever, I guess there’s nothing I can do but please, don’t hate me.”

“You’re scaring me. I don’t know if I could ever hate you.”

“Not even if… I’m non-binary?”

Demetri pauses, his heart his racing, he can’t breathe, his legs are weak- Eli is about to cry, he can feel it, the familiar invisible grip on his throat and the hot flashes behind his eyes-

“Not even then. I love you. Thank you, for telling me.” Demetri smiles and turns to hug Eli. Tears begin to spill out of their eyes; Eli is relieved, and Demetri feels safe with his best friend again.

“Okay, now please don’t hate me for this-”

“I promise I won’t hate you,” Demetri smiles.

“About the whole… pronoun thing…” Eli trails off, feeling afraid again. “This sounds weird now that I say it and I swear I’m not a girl but my pronouns… I like they/them and she/her.”

She was relieved to finally tell someone this, even if Demetri thought it was weird. They had kept it bottled up and hidden away for so long, not to mention their weeks of questioning and research and the fear of coming out. She had nothing to be afraid of, not with Demetri.

“I still don’t hate you. I’ll support you through anything, you’re my best friend. Quick question, though, when can I use your pronouns?”

She paused.

“Umm.. about that… maybe just us? For now? And like, in your head? Nobody else knows, and I’m way too scared to tell anyone else. This was scary enough.”

Demetri smiles, “I understand. Now on the topic of pronouns…”

He inhales a deep breath. “My pronouns are they/them.”

They both lean in for a hug this time. Nothing felt better than this.

“Oh yeah,” she adds. “I kind of prefer being called Hawk.”

“Kind of?” Demetri asks.

“Well, I don’t hate Eli, but Hawk is more… gender neutral. And it's badass.”

“You got it, Hawk.”

**Author's Note:**

> so so sorry of this is ooc pls i just wanted to write more of them being nonbinary i love them and im nonbinary this is sort of based on my perceptions of coming out as nonbinary so... yeah. may write more of them im not sure. and sorry for using so many dashes its a bad habit.


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